


Lights Will Guide You Home

by 4thofFive



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Comfort/Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-22
Updated: 2013-04-24
Packaged: 2017-12-09 04:03:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/769762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/4thofFive/pseuds/4thofFive
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After six years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, an angry and distrustful Danny Williams comes to Hawaii in the hopes of seeing his daughter again. Along the way he meets one Steven J. McGarrett, head of 5-0.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Title from the song Fix You by Coldplay.
> 
> I don't own 5-0 but I wish I did.

Lights Will Guide You Home, part 1 of 2

 

Danny Williams folded his arms tightly across his chest and tucked his hands under his armpits to hide the tremor running through them. His heart was pounding and his throat was tight with fear, but he couldn’t afford to show it. He had no doubt the cops were watching him on video monitors and he had no intention of giving them the satisfaction of looking afraid.

Fucking five days on this sand covered rock and he was already sitting in a police interrogation room. Danny shook his head slightly in disgust. His shitty luck was holding up as usual. He had come here planning to lead a quiet, boring life, but of course he’d been thrown head first back into the shit show that had been his existence for the past six years.

The blond man tensed as the door to the small room opened. He’d been sitting here on this hard-backed wooden chair in this claustrophobic cement room for at least 45 minutes, the blue lights casting eerie shadows in the darkened corners of the windowless room. The set up was designed to scare the crap out of perps before they were questioned and Danny had to give the cops their due, it was working.

The Jersey native looked up as a tall, lean but muscular man in dark cargo pants and a blue tee-shirt strode into the room. The tee-shirt hugged the man’s chiseled arms and colourful tattoos peaked out below the sleeves. In any other circumstance Danny might have indulged in a long, slow appraisal of the handsome, dark-haired man, but at this moment he was too scared, too angry and too desperate to get out of this small, prison-like cell to take too much notice of the cop standing in front of him.

Danny sat up straight and lifted his chin meeting the eyes of the taller man belligerently. He was certain the cop wasn’t buying Danny’s tough guy image but most important thing the blond man had learned over the last horrible years was never to let anyone see him break.

“Daniel Patrick Williams,” the tall man said conversationally, scrolling through pages on an iPad. “I’m Lt. Commander Steve McGarrett, head of Five-0.” 

Danny shrugged. The name Five-0 meant nothing to him but this tall, arrogant man acted like it should.

The cop began reading from his iPad.

“Former detective on the Newark Police Department until you were convicted of murdering a suspected drug dealer in cold blood.”

McGarrett looked up from his screen to Danny as if expecting him to agree with the facts. The Jersey native simply stared at him balefully. The taller man smirked confidently. It was obvious that he thought he had Danny dead to rights and would get him to confess eventually to whatever the hell he suspected him of.

The tall cop whistled through his teeth.

“Six years in New Jersey State Penitentiary,” he looked up again and ran his eyes up and down Danny’s smaller but well-built frame. “Pretty boy like you, they must have eaten you alive.”

Danny sneered and looked away.

The tall cop grabbed a chair from the side of the room and dragged it over to sit down in front of Danny, so close their knees were touching. The Jersey native caught a whiff of the other man’s slightly spicy aftershave.

“So, Mr. Williams,” the cop began, leaning close to Danny, his hazel eyes dark with intent. “Why don’t you tell me what you know about the murder of Anne Rowan.”

The former detective wrinkled his brow and shrugged.

“Who? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

McGarrett shifted a little closer. Even though they were sitting at the same level, the cop seemed to loom over Danny like a shroud.

“Anne Rowan,” he repeated with exaggerated patience, “The pretty blonde tourist from Kansas who was staying at the same hotel as you? Her room was two doors down you must remember? The one who was strangled to death last night. That ring any bells for you?”

Danny swallowed thickly and tightened his jaw refusing to look away from the other man’s hard eyes.

“I don’t know what the fuck you are talking about,” growled Danny with more bravado then he felt. “I don’t know this Rowan woman and I didn’t strangle anyone.”

The tall cop snorted dismissively.

“And I suppose it’s just a coincidence that you, a convicted murderer, arrive in Hawaii barely a week ago and now a woman is dead?”

The blond man shook his head in disgust.

“I’m not a convicted murderer, not any more. I was exonerated last month. If you’d bother checking your records...”

“We did,” snapped McGarrett, holding the iPad up as if Danny could read the small writing on the screen. “Your record doesn’t say a damned thing about being exonerated. All they say is you gunned down an unarmed man for no reason and now, for some reason, you’ve washed up on my island like the piece of garbage you are.”

Danny pressed his lips together tightly for a moment as he struggled to contain his rage. No good losing his shit on this cop – it would only make things worse.

“The New Jersey State’s Attorney’s office is notoriously slow about updating their records. I feel certain that if you call them they will confirm my story and send you a copy of the judge’s decision,” Danny explained with mock politeness.

The dark-haired cop shrugged and sat back in his chair.

“Even if that’s true, doesn’t mean you didn’t kill Anne Rowan.”

Danny snorted in disgust then sighed tiredly. He was so fucking sick of people making snap judgments about him.

“I didn’t kill her. You have no evidence linking me to her and besides, I had company last night. I was in my hotel room from 7:30 p.m. until just after eight this morning when several bright young cops knocked on my door and dragged me down here to these lovely accommodations.”

“Company huh?” the tall cop responded immediately, one eyebrow lifted in disbelief. “Who?”

Danny sucked in a deep breath. Normally he would tell this cop to go fuck himself and let him chase his tail for a while until he realized he had the wrong man. But Danny had had too many years of small, dank rooms and he needed to get out of this one.

“I only know him as Paul. He’s a prostitute. I paid him to spend the night with me then leave quietly in the morning. I picked him up at the Orpheus Club. I’m sure if you have any investigative skills at all you’d be able to find him and he will confirm my story.”

The cop crossed his arms lightly over his chest and regarded Danny searchingly for a moment.

“Do you always pick up prostitutes?”

The blond man glared at him. Who the fuck was this gorgeous man who could probably get laid at the snap of his fingers to sit in judgement of him? 

“I’ve been in jail for six years for a murder I didn’t commit,” Danny growled “I’ve been out for just over a month. You figure it out asshole. Also, fuck you.”

Danny was surprised to see the cop’s eyes soften slightly. The taller man gazed at Danny for several more seconds then nodded and stood up.

“We’ll look into your story. If it checks out you’ll be free to go. Until then I’ll have one of my people put you into a cell so you’ll be a bit more comfortable.”

Danny snorted in derision.

“Yeah, that’s the first thing I think of when I think of a jail cell – comfort.”

The tall cop shrugged unconcerned.

“You can stay in here if you’d rather.”

Danny swallowed hard and shook his head rapidly. A jail cell would be 100 times better than this oppressive little room.

**********

Danny lifted his head from the cot he was sprawled on when his cell door opened and Lt. Commander tall, dark and condescending came into the room.

“Mr. Williams we’ve confirmed your story with the man you were with last night. You’re free to go.”

Danny swung his legs off the cot and sat up abruptly almost afraid to believe the words. Was it possible something was going right for him finally? He almost grinned in relief, but managed to fight back the urge. He wasn’t about to let this arrogant cop think he’d scared Danny at all.

“You’re sure now?” the blond man snapped angrily while glaring at McGarrett. “You don’t have some other weak-assed case to pin on me? I’m an ex-con so obviously I’m dirty.”

McGarrett blew out an annoyed breath.

“We were just doing our jobs Mr. Williams. I’m sorry you were inconvenienced, but let’s not drag this out any longer all right?”

Danny felt rage bubbling inside him as he climbed to his feet and stalked over to the muscular cop. He had to fight down the urge to punch the arrogant ass in the teeth as he glared up at him.

“Let me ask you something,” Danny growled. “Now that I’m on this sand-infested island can I expect you to come around any time you need to solve a case quickly? Am I always going to be your go-to suspect? I’m sure in your mind I’m a dirty cop so that makes it open-season on me right?”

“Look!” Steve barked defensively, fists jammed on his hips. “You know god-damned well how this works. We checked everyone staying at the hotel, found out you had a murder conviction and brought you in to question you. If you were still a cop you know you’d do the same fucking thing. Now I’m sorry again that you’ve been inconvenienced and your feelings were hurt, but you're free to go now so I’d strongly suggest you get your ass out of here before I slam this door and let you spend the night.”

Danny stared up at the taller man for a long moment almost choking on his rage. He gave the cop a look he hoped displayed all the disgust he felt before he pushed past the taller man and strode out of the building.

**********

“Rachel please, I’m begging you,” Danny pleaded over the phone. “I’m out, I’ve been exonerated. I’ve left my family – after all they’ve done to stand by me and work to get me free - I’ve left them to move here to be closer to my daughter. Please let me see her.”

“Danny, I’m very glad that you’ve been cleared and can start a new life, but Grace doesn’t remember you. Stan has become her father and I think it’s best that she not have her life disrupted by some stranger appearing in it all of a sudden.”

“I’m not some stranger!” Danny all but shouted as he paced around his hotel room – a different hotel from where the murder had been committed. He didn’t want that McGarrett asshole coming by and arresting him for something else. “I’m her father and I have the right to see her.”

Danny heard his ex-wife sigh into the phone. It was obvious he was getting on her nerves and wished to end the call as soon as possible. He could still read her like a book.

“I have full custody of Grace, Danny,” Rachel replied coldly. “I make the decisions about who she will and will not see. Besides, even though you were innocent you spent six years in jail with some of the worst members of society. I don’t think that makes you fit company to be around a small girl anymore do you?”

Danny stumbled over to a nearby chair and sat in it with a thump. Fuck was she really going to keep him away from his daughter forever? Danny didn’t think he could survive that.

“Rachel...I love her. I would never hurt her. I’m not about to start telling stories about my prison days to her. I just want to get to know my baby again. I just want to see her and be her Danno once more. Please don’t keep her away from me.”

“Danny...” Rachel began softly.

“Rachel, please,” Danny choked out, tears stinging his eyes. “All those years – for six years all I thought of everyday was getting out and seeing my baby again. She was the first thing I thought about when I woke up in the morning and the last thing at night. She kept me alive and sane. Please Rachel, please. I need to see my little girl again.”

A soft sigh came through the phone and Danny’s gut clenched in terror.

“I’ll...I’ll think about it Danny alright? I’ll think about it. That’s all I can promise right now.”

*********

Danny slipped the sunglasses over his eyes before he pushed open the hotel’s lobby door and walked into the bright Hawaiian morning. Fuck the place was so bright and so hot, Danny wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to stand it. Then again a New Jersey prison cell in high summer could be like a sauna and at least here he could retreat to his air conditioned room, or take a dip in the pool. He was free here. The former detective couldn’t help the small smile that spread across his lips. Free. He didn’t think he’d ever get used to that word. Didn’t think he’d ever take it for granted again. 

For the rest of his life Danny would remember the flight that brought him to Hawaii. He’d spent most of the trip with his forehead pressed to the glass of the small aircraft window watching the earth unfold below him. During his time in prison Danny used to watch the birds that circled the prison and wish he could be them. For those 10 hours on that plane he was.

The blond man’s smile faded as he rounded a corner to find Lt. Commander McGarrett leaning casually against a blue Chevy Silverado, his legs crossed lightly at the ankles and his hands resting comfortably in his pockets. The sight of the tall, handsome man looking so relaxed and casual made something flip in Danny’s stomach, but he couldn’t afford to engage in any fantasies. McGarrett was dangerous.

The Jersey native stopped in front of the cop and threw his arms out wide.

“What? What now?” he demanded in frustration, “has there been another murder you want to pin on me or are you just determined to ruin my fucking life?”

McGarrett stood up straight and pulled his hands from his pocket to raise them in a supplicating gesture.

“No, no nothing like that I just...”

“What?” Danny spat, “Why can’t you leave me alone?”

The taller man shrugged lightly.

“Look, Mr. Williams...I just wanted to apologize for the other day and tell you...

McGarrett chewed on his bottom lip and looked away and Danny felt the anger begin to drain from him. Who was this strange man? 

“Tell me what?” Danny prompted, trying unsuccessfully to remain pissed off.

McGarrett looked up and met his eyes again.

“It’s just that I read about you – your case – and I wanted to tell you that I’m sorry about what happened to you, and I admire your courage.”

The blond man snorted dismissively.

“Didn’t take much courage to sit in a jail cell for six years.”

The cop stood up taller and shifted from one foot to the other as if anxious that Danny should understand what he meant.

“Yeah, it did. Anyone else might have been broken by it, but you weren’t. You never stopped fighting to prove you were innocent. I read that after the judge overturned your conviction and ordered a new trial the D.A. offered you a deal that would have ended the case set you free but you refused it.”

“The D.A offered to let me go with time served if I pleaded guilty, but there was no way I was going to do that. I wasn’t guilty. The evidence finally proved that.”

Steve nodded rapidly, his eyes bright with new-found respect for the small but tough mainlander.

“Yeah, that’s what I meant about being brave. You couldn’t be sure that you’d eventually be exonerated, but still you stood firm. I just...I can’t help but admire your courage.”

Danny had to swallow hard against the thick knot that had formed in his throat. For some reason this stranger’s words made him feel stupidly proud of himself.

“Yeah well...” the Jersey native’s voice faded away in embarrassment as he scratched the back of his neck distractedly.

“Anyway,” the tall cop continued. “I just want you to know that if you need anything or, I don’t know, if you’d like to go for a beer or something, you can call me.”

Danny stared at the taller man as if he were a freak. It had been so long that anyone had treated him with respect, had shown any sort of kindness to him, that he was immediately suspicious.

“Why would you want to do that?”

The Commander gave Danny a small, shy smile that sent a warm feeling flooding throughout the former detective’s body.

“You don’t know anyone here – at least I assume you don’t – so I thought you could use a friend.”

The former cop examined McGarrett for a long moment looking for any sign of deception or an ulterior motive, but all he saw was open, honest kindness. He didn’t know what to think about this turn of events. 

“I’m off work now actually,” McGarrett continued before Danny could reject him or tell him to fuck off, “How about a beer?”

*********

Danny brought the chilled beer mug to his lips and drained half of the glass in several large gulps. He licked his lips appreciatively and sighed in satisfaction. When he looked up across the table McGarrett was smiling at him in understanding.

“Everything must taste amazing after so many years of prison food,” the taller man questioned gently.

Danny nodded.

“When I first got out I stuffed myself so full of my mother’s Italian food I ended up puking later that night. I realized I’d have to pace myself, but every meal is like a new experience. Fresh seafood is my favourite. The flavours are so...”

Danny snapped his mouth shut and dropped his eyes to the table. He suddenly felt silly and oddly exposed opening up to McGarrett in this way. It wasn’t that discussing food was particularly revealing, but he was so used to keeping part of himself hidden, to wearing a mask of impenetrable coldness that even gushing about the taste of food left him feeling strangely vulnerable. 

“I get what you mean,” replied McGarrett as he picked up the conversation effortlessly. “I spent 20 years in the Navy and while food aboard ships can be pretty good, MRE’s are not exactly haute cuisine.”

“What did you do in the Navy?” Danny questioned, grateful to have the opportunity to discuss something safer.

“I spent some time in naval intelligence but mostly I was a SEAL.”

The blond man raised his eyebrows in surprise and respect. He’d figured McGarrett was a tough son of a bitch but he never imagined he had been a SEAL.

“Are you retired from the navy?”

Steve shook his head as he took a long drink of his beer before turning to signal the bartender for another round.

“No, I’m still in the reserves, but I left active service to run the Five-0 task force for the Governor.”

Danny nodded as he traced a finger through the condensation on his beer mug. He’d read up on Five-0 after being released from their custody. He couldn’t help but be impressed with their work but still, they were cops and he’d lost his respect and fascination for cops the day a SWAT team had knocked down his front door and dragged him away from his house in handcuffs leaving a screaming Grace and a sobbing Rachel behind.

The two men sat quiet and uncomfortable for a long moment as the bartender brought their fresh drinks and took away the empty mugs.

“I looked up your record with the NPD,” Steve began carefully. “You were a hell of a good cop.”

Danny snorted. 

“For all the good it did me.”

The dark haired man nodded then licked his lips nervously.

“Umm...I probably shouldn’t ask but...I’m wondering what brought you to Hawaii? You don’t seem to like it very much and...”

Danny glared at the taller man, his hand gripping the handle of his beer mug in a white knuckle hold.

“Why all the questions?” he demanded. “What is it you want from me? How is this any of your business? I’ve come to Hawaii for personal reasons. I’m not doing anything illegal so why don’t you leave me alone?”

The blond man stood up knocking his chair over with a clatter. He began to dig in his pockets for money to pay for his beer. McGarrett reached out as if to grip the smaller man’s arm, but he obviously thought better of the idea and pulled his hand back.

“Look Danny, I get that you’re suspicious of people – especially cops – and I really don’t blame you. I’m suspicious of most people myself. But I really don’t want anything from you and I’m not trying to mess up your life. I just think that you’re a good guy and I figured maybe we could be friends. I don’t have a lot of friends and I’m thinking you don’t either, at least on Hawaii. If you don’t want that ok, I understand, but at least know that if you ever need someone to talk to or you need help you can call me, ok?”

McGarrett fished in his pocket and pulled out a business card. He drew a pen from another pocket and scratched a number on the back of the card before holding it to Danny.

“Here’s my office number and my cell phone. Call if you want to get a beer or feel like going out for a bite to eat or something. If you don’t want that I get it ok? I won’t bother you anymore.”

Danny took the card carefully as if it would burst into flames. He stared at it for a moment then looked up at Steve McGarrett’s face in confusion. He opened his mouth to speak then thought better of it. With a curt nod he turned and walked out of the bar.

**********

Danny used his new iPhone to check his bank balance online. Soon after he’d been released from prison, and in an obvious attempt to ward off a lawsuit, the Newark Police Department had paid him six years of back pay. After giving his parents money to defray some of the expense they’d gone through fighting for his release he now had just over $300,000 in his bank account but that wouldn’t last forever.

If he had any hope of seeing Grace again he needed to either rent or buy a decent home and he would probably need to hire a lawyer to fight for custody since Rachel had shown no inclination to let him visit with his baby. It wouldn’t take long for his account to be drained, especially in a place as expensive as Hawaii. He knew eventually he’d have to look for work, but right now he just wanted to enjoy his freedom and begin the process of building some kind of life for himself on this hunk of lava rock.

With a newspaper in hand, Dannt sat at a table in an outdoor patio and ordered himself some sushi as he scanned the houses for sale or rent section of the Star Advertiser. There was a fair amount of choice out there, but he knew so little about Oahu he couldn’t be sure of where the best neighbourhood were. Could he afford to get something closer to Grace’s school or should he try for something near the beach? Were there neighbourhoods he should avoid? Even paradise must have its rough areas.

The former detective sighed and sat back on his chair to watch the brightly-clad tourists walk by. It had been a week since he’d had that beer with Steve McGarrett and the Five-0 cop had made no attempt to contact him. It was funny how that both relieved and disappointed Danny. He dug out his wallet and pulled McGarrett’s card from one of the slots and examined it thoughtfully. While his brain told him McGarrett was just another cop who couldn’t be trusted, his gut thought that maybe this guy was the real deal, someone who could be a friend. Someone Danny could turn to if he needed help or advice.

The Jersey native sighed. The truth was McGarrett was right, he had few friends. Most of his so-called friends on the Newark Police had turned their backs on him when he was arrested. Of course they all came flocking around after he’d been exonerated assuring him they’d never doubted his innocence, but he knew they were lying and also knew they’d stab him in the back if he ever got set up again. Was it possible McGarrett genuinely wanted to be friends with him expecting nothing in return? Danny found it hard to believe but he was also finding it harder and harder to deal with the dull ache of loneliness that dogged him day and night. Danny placed the business card carefully on the table and pulled out his phone.

**********

“How do you like your steak?”

Danny turned his attention from gazing at the ocean to Steve who was standing by the grill holding tongs in one hand and a plate with two thick steaks in the other.

“Oh um, medium please.”

Steve nodded and carefully placed the meat on the sizzling grill taking a moment to adjust the flame under them before picking up a nearby bottle of beer and taking a pull from it.

Danny couldn’t help but smile at the laser-like focus the SEAL gave to preparing their dinner. He had a feeling Steve McGarrett gave everything that kind of focus.

“You look at home there,” Danny offered tentatively as he gestured toward the barbeque. He wished he could find a way to relax around the leader of Five-0.

Steve offered him a proud smile.

“I’m pretty good with steaks, if I do say so myself. My repertoire of things I can cook isn’t large, but steak is definitely my best thing.”

Danny couldn’t help but grin back. 

“Well it smells good that’s for sure,” the Jersey native replied.

The two men fell silent and Danny turned his gaze back to the ocean. He’d never been a big fan of the ocean since he’d witnessed the drowning of a childhood friend, but the gently lapping water behind the McGarrett home was oddly calming, especially as the sun set bathing the island in a rich orange glow.

The former detective turned back to look at Steve.

“My daughter is here,” he offered quietly.

The SEAL looked up at him eyebrows wrinkled in confusion.

“Huh?”

Danny cleared his throat and spoke a little louder.

“Last week you asked me what brought me to Hawaii and that’s the reason – my daughter is here.”

Steve grimaced then nodded in understanding.

“I remember reading you had a wife and child and that she’d divorced you a year or so after you were sent to prison.”

Danny tensed his jaw and turned slightly away from Steve so the cop couldn’t see the pain etched on his face. It still hurt thinking about it; the day Rachel came to the prison to announce that she was filing for divorce from Danny because she met someone else. Danny had almost gone mad with grief and rage. The moment he’d been returned to his cell he’d begun screaming and tearing the small room apart. It had taken four guards in riot gear and armed with a taser to get him under control. He’d spent a week in solitary.

“Yeah. She uh...she stuck with me for a while, tried to get the cops to review my case, but I guess it just all became too much. Her friends turned against her and she got a lot of crank phone calls and hate mail. I guess I can’t blame her for cutting her loses.”

Danny looked over and gave Steve a weak smile before turning away again. 

“I’m sorry, Danny,” the SEAL murmured quietly. The gentle tone in the other man’s voice was almost Danny’s undoing. He had to blink rapidly to keep the tears at bay. Finally he could trust his voice enough to speak.

“Two months after the divorce went through she married Stanley Edwards a big shot real estate developer. He used his money to terminate my parental rights and then they packed up and moved to Hawaii.” Danny turned to face Steve once more. “That’s why I’m here although I may be wasting my time.”

“What do you mean?”

Danny took a long pull from his beer grateful the falling darkness hid his shaking hands.

“She won’t let me see my daughter – Grace is her name. Rachel won’t let me see her.”

Danny watched Steve’s jaw tighten in anger.

“Why not?” the Commander demanded, “She knows you’re innocent, she knows you’re free. Why the fuck would she keep your daughter away from you?”

Danny sighed heavily and walked over to one of the deck chairs and sank into it weakly. He couldn’t help the mirthless laugh that escaped him.

“She thinks that after six years in prison I’m too hardened, too damaged to be around a 10-year-old.” Danny shrugged his shoulders in defeat and dropped his eyes to the floor of the lanai.

“Maybe she’s right,” he continued softly. “Grace doesn’t remember me anyway; she was four when I was arrested. As far as she’s concerned Stanley Edwards is her father. Maybe it isn’t fair of me to try to force my way into her life after all this time.”

Steve slammed down the lid of the barbeque and stalked over to Danny glowering down at the smaller man.

“That’s bullshit, Danny, and you know it. You’re Grace’s father and you have the right to see her and she has the right to get to know you. Jesus Christ you were ripped out of her life for six years because of something you didn’t do. You’ve suffered enough – both of you have.”

Danny looked up at the looming man with shock. He expected sympathetic noises not offended anger on his behalf.

“Why do you care so much?” Danny asked hoarsely, genuinely confused by the other man’s obvious concern.

“Because I think you’re a decent guy, and I’m betting you’re a great father. You left your family in New Jersey to move 5,000 miles just for the chance to be near her again. I respect that. I admire it and it sickens me that your ex-wife doesn’t see how much this means to you.”

The two men stared at each other for a moment before Steve straightened up abruptly and turned to walk back to the barbeque as if suddenly embarrassed by his outburst.

“I just don’t think it’s right, that’s all,” the dark-haired man finished weakly as he lifted the cover to the barbeque and needlessly shifted the steaks around on the grill. “A father should be with his kid.”

Danny stared at the other man’s slightly hunched shoulders feeling a myriad of emotions flowing through him. It had been so long, so long since he had a friend he could count on. One he could trust. He wondered if he could let himself trust Steve McGarrett enough to be that friend.

*********

Danny fiddled with his fork as he poked at the food on his plate. This was the first time in two months he didn’t relish a meal like a starving man. He looked up and took a moment to examine the three people around him.

Steve had insisted that Danny come to Five-0 headquarters to properly meet his team and see all of their high tech gadgetry. At first Danny had refused loudly. There was no way he was voluntarily walking into a police station and hanging around with a bunch of cops even if one of them was rapidly becoming important in his life. But as usual Steve, the annoying bastard, had coaxed and cajoled him until he’d reluctantly agreed to join the team for lunch on Wednesday.

He hated to admit it, and would probably never tell Steve this, but he liked the Five-0 team immediately. Chin Ho Kelly was an experienced cop who looked like he’d seen it all and done it all. But instead of those experiences making him hard and bitter like so many of the older cops Danny had known, the man had a calm, almost zen-like quality that made Danny relax almost immediately. He had no doubt that Kelly would be a force to be reckoned with if riled, but his easy smile and his ready acceptance of Danny in their office made the Jersey native feel almost at home.

Danny glanced over at Kono Kalakua. The woman was fucking gorgeous – hell all of the Five-0 team members were gorgeous – but more importantly she was smart as a whip and he could tell from her toned body and her easy grace that she could probably kick the ass of almost any perp she met up with. Steve had told him Kono only had a couple of years on the job and that made her even more impressive. Kono seemed to have the instincts of an experienced cop and Danny found himself enjoying her presence.

“Something wrong with your food, Danny?” Steve’s voice interrupted the blond man’s thoughts and he looked up at his friend in confusion.

“Huh?”

“Your food,” Steve gestured towards the barely touched meal in front of Danny, “is it ok? You’ve hardly touched it.”

Danny glanced down at his plate then up again to find the Five-0 team looking at him in concern.

“Oh no, no it’s fine. I guess I’m just not that hungry.”

“That’s a first,” mocked Steve gently, a warm smile on his face. “I’ve seen you shovel back food like a backhoe.”

Danny rolled his eyes and nodded.

“Yeah well maybe the food on this sun bleached rock is starting to put me off my appetite.”

Steve grinned.

“Oh yes, don’t tell me, the food is so much better in Jersey. You miss Sal’s and Manny’s right?”

Danny couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face. He and Steve had begun to settle into an easy, teasing banter and he couldn’t believe how right and good it felt.

“That’s correct, Steven!” Danny replied with mock annoyance, gesturing towards his friend with his fork. “You don’t know the meaning of good food. You wouldn’t recognize a proper pizza if your life depended on it.”

The Jersey native turned his attention to the other two members of Five-0.

“Can you believe that he ordered a pizza with pineapple on it on Saturday? Pineapple!”

Kono smothered a smile as she cocked her head in confusion.

“What’s the matter with pineapple?” she asked innocently.

Danny huffed out a disgusted sigh and shook his head hopelessly.

“Nothing if it’s in one of those umbrella drinks, or in a fruit salad, but pineapple does not belong on pizza,” the former detective ticked off the proper pizza toppings on his fingers. “Mozz, dough and sauce, that is all. Pineapple? Out! Ham? Out!”

Steve snickered loudly and rolled his eyes at his Hawaiian friends. This was a speech he’d heard before.

“As you can see, Danny takes his pizza very seriously.”

“I can see that,” replied Chin solemnly as if this conversation was earth shaking in its importance. Only those who knew him could see the laughter in his eyes. “Maybe we should introduce him to the other foods of Hawaii so he doesn’t think we’re all a bunch of philistines.”

Danny pressed his lips together to suppress a grin but raised a warning finger.

“I’m willing to try pretty much anything, but under no circumstances will I eat a food called pupu!”

Steve laughed happily as he leaned over and slapped Danny affectionately on the back. 

“Duly noted Danny, no pupu for you.” 

The Commander stood up and wiped his mouth with a paper napkin before inclining his head towards his office.

“We need to get back to work but I want to talk to you before you go Danny.”

The Jersey native stood up as well but glanced around nervously. He feared there would always be a small part of him that worried he was being set up and that any moment a SWAT team would appear and drag him back to prison. Steve seemed to notice his discomfort and placed a gentle arm around his shoulders.

“It’s ok, c’mon. I just need to chat quickly before you head out.”

A slightly reluctant Danny allowed himself to be guided into Steve’s office. The Commander shut the door and walked over to the desk sitting on the edge and gesturing at Danny to take one of the chairs in front.

“Look, Danny,” the other man began hesitantly, “I did something and you may not be too thrilled with me when you find out.”

Danny stiffened immediately waiting for Steve to drop the bomb on him.

“I umm...I called your ex-wife,” Steven reported quietly.

Danny sat frozen in the chair and stared up at his friend dumbfounded.

“You...what?”

“I called your ex-wife,” Steve repeated calmly, lacing his fingers loosely and resting them on his lap. “I know you’re going to be pissed, but it just made me sick that she wouldn’t let you see your daughterm and I thought if I called and spoke to her it might help.”

Danny swallowed heavily as his breath became ragged. He wasn’t entirely sure at this moment how he felt. He’d known Steve a few weeks and already the SEAL was insinuating himself in Danny’s personal business. He blinked up at the taller man dully.

“But how did you..?” Danny shook his head and waved that question away with one hand. “I...what did you say to her?”

Steve licked his lips nervously but maintained eye contact with Danny.

“I told her that you and I had become friends and that I thought you were a really great guy and I thought she should let you visit with your daughter. I told her that I was the head of Five-0 and I wouldn’t suggest anything that might endanger her daughter but that I trusted you and knew you’d be an amazing father to Grace if she just gave you a chance.”

Danny pushed himself unsteadily to his feet and began pacing Steve’s office distractedly. He clenched his fists in barely suppressed anger. Steve didn’t know Rachel, he didn’t know how much she valued her privacy and how much she’d resent this cop butting into their family business.

Danny turned abruptly to stare Steve down.

“Why would you do that? Where the hell do you get off..?”

Steve put up both hands to interrupt the flow of Danny’s words.

“She’s agreed Danny. She’s agreed to let you see Grace.”

The smaller man stood in the middle of the office too stunned to remember that he’d been angry a moment before.

“W-what?”

“She’s agreed to let you spend some time with Grace. She’s bringing her to my house on Saturday. The two of you will have the whole afternoon together.”

Danny shivered involuntarily. Was this a dream? After all this time was he really going to see his baby again?

“I’m sorry that you won’t be able to see her alone. As part of the deal I agreed to supervise your visit, but I’ll stay in the house while you two hang out on the beach if you like,” Steve continued, the words coming in a rush. “It’ll be ok, Danny. After she sees how great you are with Grace I’m sure Rachel will let you see her more often.”

Danny could do nothing but stare at his friend blankly like Steve’s words had spoken in some foreign language. Then, as if something broke inside him, Danny felt a wave of emotion roll over him and almost drown him with its power. He felt his legs collapse under him and was almost unaware that Steve was kneeling beside him on the floor, his arms wrapped tightly around the Jersey native as the smaller man sobbed tears of joy into his best friend’s chest.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After six years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, an angry and distrustful Danny Williams comes to Hawaii in the hopes of seeing his daughter again. Along the way he meets one Steven J. McGarrett, head of 5-0.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title from the song Fix You by Cold Play

Lights Will Guide You Home, part 2 of 2

 

Danny ran shaking hands over his hair for the thousandth time then adjusted the hem of his tee-shirt. He stood on the front porch of Steve’s home, the SEAL standing silent but steady beside him.

The Jersey native glanced over at his friend who was smiling at him fondly. Danny smoothed down the front of his shirt one more time.

“Do I look ok?” he asked nervously, his mouth dry and hoarse.

Steve reached out and cupped the back of Danny’s neck gently.

“You look great, buddy. Everything is going to be just fine. She may be nervous at first so you’ve gotta give her time, ok?”

Danny nodded then stiffened as he heard the sound of a car’s tires crunching over gravel. He swallowed convulsively as a grey Mercedes rolled into view. The car stopped in front of the house and Rachel climbed slowly out from behind the wheel and stared at Danny for a moment. She was dressed in soft grey linen pants and a cream coloured top. Her hair was knotted loosely behind her head. She was still beautiful, still elegant, still out of his league.

“Hello, Danny,” she greeted him quietly, her eyes brimming with tears.

He nodded at her but his eyes drifted magnetically to the car to try to catch sight of his daughter. All he could see was the top of a brown head in the back seat. He took two stumbling steps forward now desperate to see the little girl he hadn’t laid eyes on in six long, miserable years.

Danny felt Steve’s warm but firm hand on his shoulder and remembered that he couldn’t rush to the little girl or he risked frightening her. He nodded at the silent reminder and stood frozen on the bottom step of the porch.

Rachel turned and opened the back door of the car and murmured softly to her daughter.

As Danny stood motionless, a small but beautiful girl with big brown eyes and long brunette hair tied into pig tails climbed out of the big car and stood pressed up against her mother clutching the older woman’s hand nervously.

Danny took several shuddering breaths then forced a smile to his face trying desperately to calm down enough that his daughter would not be frightened of him.

“Hi, Grace,” his voice sounded so raspy he had to clear it loudly before he could speak again. “Hi sweetie, how are you? Gosh you’ve gotten so big I hardly recognize you. I’ve missed you. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other hasn’t it?”

Grace stood mutely staring up at her father while she held her mother’s hand in a tight grip.

Danny licked his lips nervously and took a tentative step towards his little girl. He knelt down several feet away from her.

“Baby, do you know who I am?”

The child nodded slowly. She looked up at her mother and then back to her father.

“You’re Danno,” she replied shyly. “You’re my daddy.”

 

**********

Danny dumped the bucket of sand in the spot indicated by Grace then glanced back up at the house. Steve was sitting on the lanai drinking a glass of iced tea and flipping through a magazine. Somehow the SEAL had convinced Rachel that it was alright to leave and let him watch over Danny and Grace. As if sensing eyes upon him, Steve looked up and smiled warmly at Danny. The blond man felt his stomach flip at the look in Steve’s eyes and Danny felt suddenly, for the first time in years, that he was right where he belonged.

“Danno?” Grace’s still shy voice brought Danny's attention back to his daughter.

“Yes, honey?”

“Can you dig a moat for the castle?”

Danny grinned happily.

“Can I dig a moat? I’ll have you know I’m the moat digging champion of Newark, New Jersey.”

Grace giggled and rolled her eyes as she used her plastic shovel to fill her pink bucket with more sand.

“That’s silly, there isn’t really a moat digging championship is there?”

Danny wrinkled his nose as he used both hands to begin scooping sand from around the walls of the sand castle to give Grace her moat.

“Well no, but if there were I’m sure I’d win.”

Grace giggled again and shook her head in a way that reminded him of Rachel. He stopped his sand scooping and sat back on his heels to stare at the little girl as she busied herself with the sand castle. He couldn’t get over how beautiful she was, and how grown up and smart and...Danny felt his throat close up as he thought about all of the things he’d missed in her life – birthdays, learning to ride a bike, first day of school. He pressed his fist tightly to his mouth and turned away from his daughter.

“Danno? Are you ok?”

Danny swallowed hard and sucked in a deep breath before running the back of one hand over his eyes trying to tamp down his emotions. He forced a smile to his face and turned back to his daughter.

“Yeah baby, I’m ok I’m just...I’m really happy.”

Danny felt her big brown eyes examining him closely. She obviously wasn’t buying his explanation.

“Danno?” Grace’s voice was tiny and nervous. “Why did you have to go to prison?”

Danny took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He’d hoped to avoid this talk for a while but he’d promised himself he’d be as honest as he could with his 10-year-old daughter. He smiled at her warmly and patted the ground beside him. She scrambled over and sat down next to him, her bright, inquisitive eyes examining him closely.

“I don’t know how much mommy has told you,” Danny began softly, “but my police partner Rick Peterson, a man I loved and trusted, set me up. He stole a gun from my locker and killed another man with it. The police found the gun and took my finger prints off it and arrested me for the murder.”

“Why did Rick Peterson set you up? Why did he do something so mean?”

Danny began wringing his hands nervously. Talking about this always made him angry, but he was determined to keep calm.

“I saw him do something bad. I saw him stealing some money and I told him if he didn’t put it back I’d report him. Instead he framed me for the murder and I had to go to jail even though I was innocent.”

Danny looked down at his daughter intently.

“I need you to know Grace that I WAS innocent. I never killed anyone and I never did anything wrong. When the Newark Police and the State of New Jersey found out that I’d been set up by Rick they let me out of prison, but that took a long time. That’s why I wasn’t here when you were growing up and I’m sorry for that...I’m so sorry.”

Danny squeezed his eyes closed and took a shuddering breath. He felt a small hand clutch at his forearm and opened his wet eyes to look down at his daughter.

“I know you didn’t hurt anyone, Daddy. Mommy told me so. She said you are a good man and you were a good policeman. I always knew you didn’t hurt anyone and I knew you’d come back someday.”

“Yeah?” Danny couldn’t keep the sense of wonder out of his voice.

The little girl nodded firmly.

“Yup. You can do anything. I remember. I remember you, Danno. I remember you twirling me around in the living room, and I remember reading books together, and I remember you used to call me Monkey.”

Danny could do nothing about the sob that burst out of him and he covered his face with his hands. He felt two little hands patting his cheeks and Danny opened his arms wide and wrapped them around his baby girl. Gracie climbed into his lap and snuggled against him as if she’d been there forever.

 

**********

Danny stood on Steve’s front porch still staring at the retreating tail lights of Rachel’s Mercedes. He felt both happy and sad at this moment. Happy – thrilled – that he was back in his little girl’s life, and sad that their day had to end. He couldn’t help but shake his head at the storm of emotions going through him. For so long he’d tamped down on his feelings careful to not let anything show, but now it was as if a dam had broken and he couldn’t stop the flood of emotions.

Danny felt two large hands on his shoulders and he instinctively leaned back against Steve’s solid chest.

“You’ll see her again on Wednesday when you pick her up from school,” the taller man whispered gently in his ear. Danny nodded.

“It feels like a lifetime.”

“Well, we’ll just have to keep you busy then won’t we?” Steve responded, a note of excitement in his voice. Danny’s heart surged at the words. Could he allow himself to hope that Steve was having feelings for him? He turned to face his friend.

“What do you mean?”

Steve grinned happily.

“Kono and Chin and I have talked about it and I’ve already cleared it with the Governor...I want you to come and work with me at Five-0.”

A flicker of disappointment crossed Danny’s face but he quashed it immediately.

“You want me to work with you? As a cop?”

Steve nodded excitedly and Danny got the feeling the SEAL had been holding this secret in for hours.

“Yeah, well more of an investigator I guess. I can’t make you a cop with the HPD, only the Chief can do that, but I want to make you a special investigator with Five-0.”

Danny sighed and turned away slightly but not before catching the worried expression on Steve’s face. The dark-haired man reached out and laid a hand on Danny’s shoulder.

“Danny? Hey, is this the wrong thing to suggest?”

Danny looked up at his friend and gave him a weak smile.

“No babem it’s ok. I’m honoured that you want me as part of the team it’s just...I don’t know if I can be a cop again. I don’t know if I can arrest people and put them in prison – not now that I know what prison is like.”

Steve nodded and squeezed Danny’s shoulder gently.

“I get that, I really do. But some people deserve to go to jail, you know that Danny. And we’ll always do our best to make sure that only the guilty are prosecuted. I think having you on the team will be a constant reminder to keep an open mind and not jump to conclusions during our investigations.”

Danny nodded tiredly. This day had drained him emotionally and he couldn’t think about Steve’s offer at this moment. Seeming to sense his friend’s exhaustion, Steve slid his hand down Danny’s shoulder to wrap it around his bicep and began tugging gently.

“Come on, let’s get you to bed. You can stay here tonight in the guest room.”

Danny raised a protesting hand.

“No, I’ve already put you out enough today. I’ll go back to my hotel.”

“Danno!” Steve replied firmly already co-opting Grace’s nickname for her father. “You’re staying here and that’s final. Stop arguing with me.”

Danny smiled and shook his head in resignation allowing his friend to pull him gently into the house.

“You gotta save everyone don’t you babe?”

Steve grinned down at him as he wrapped an arm around his shoulder and guided him up the stairs.

“Not everyone Danno, just the people who matter most.”

 

**********

Danny ran wildly down the long, narrow cement hallway trying desperately to find Grace. He could hear her calling for him over and over, her screams and sobs tearing at him like knife wounds. The more he ran the longer the hallway got and his legs felt heavier and heavier. Hands reached out from between barred windows to grab at him and he had to wrench himself out of their claw-like grip. 

Suddenly Rick Peterson stood in front of him, his thin, pale face twisted into a mask of cruelty.

“You’ll never find her, D,” Peterson mocked with a laugh, “she’s mine now. You’ll never find her, and you’ll never get out of here.”

“No!” Danny screamed trying desperately to push has way past Peterson, but everywhere he stepped Peterson’s face floated in front of him. 

“No! Let me go! Grace! Grace where are you?”

“Daddy!”

“Grace, where are you?”

“Danny! Wake up!”

Danny cried out once more as his eyes flew open to find Steve sitting on the bed next to him shaking his shoulders.

“St-Steve?”

“Yeah, it’s me. It’s ok, buddy. You were having a dream. You’re safe now. Everything is ok.”

“Oh god!” Danny gasped as he scrambled to sit up in the bed. 

“Godm it was so real,” he choked feeling his eyes sting with tears. 

Steve wrapped his arms around him and pulled the smaller man tight against his chest rocking him gently as Danny shivered uncontrollably.

Soon Danny began to calm down and fear was replaced by embarrassment, then anger at himself. Steve must think him pathetic. He’d survived six years in prison without anyone around to cuddle him like a baby when he was upset, why did he suddenly need his best friend to do that? Jesus he was getting weak and needy. Everything he promised himself he’d never become.

Gently he pushed Steve away and rubbed his hands tiredly down his face so he didn’t have to look at Steve’s undoubtedly pitying expression.

“Sorry. Don’t know what came over me. I’m becoming a big baby I guess. I’m fine now. Go back to bed.”

Steve placed a warm hand on Danny’s thigh and gave it a squeeze as he ducked his head to try to catch the other man’s eyes.

“You have nothing to be ashamed of Danny. Everyone has bad dreams.”

Danny forced a smile to his face and nodded vigorously, his eyes still not meeting Steve’s. 

“Yeah I know. Thanks for coming in but I’m tired. I’m going back to sleep now, ok?”

“Danny…”

“It’s fine, Steven,” Danny snapped in annoyance, “I’m fine, ok? Can you leave please?”

Danny lay back down on the bed and rolled onto his side, his back to Steve. He could feel his friend staring at him for a moment before the mattress shifted as Steve stood up and left the room.

 

**********

 

A rumpled but fully-dressed Danny entered the kitchen the next morning to find Steve sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper and eating a slice of whole grain toast. The Commander looked up at him and smiled.

“Morning, Danno, how did you sleep?”

Danny lifted a hand in acknowledgement and walked to the fridge to dig out the orange juice keeping his back to Steve as much as possible.

“Good. Really good. Thanks.”

Steve furrowed his brow in confusion at his friend’s abrupt answer not to mention his strange behaviour last night.

“Is everything ok?” the Commander asked worriedly.

Danny gave him a brief smile over his shoulder then busied himself pouring a glass of juice.

‘Yeah. Everything’s fine. Just gonna have some juice and get out of your hair.”

“You’re not in my hair,” Steve replied quietly. “I thought maybe you’d like to spend the day. I could teach you to surf or we could go to a movie or something.”

Danny drank his juice down as he considered how to reply. He would love nothing more than to spend the day with Steve, but he was starting to feel he was already growing too close to the man. Worse than that, he was afraid he was falling in love with his best friend.

“Oh I’m sorry, I can’t. Got a lot of things to do.”

“Like what?”

Danny shrugged as he rinsed out his glass and placed it in the dishwasher.

“Just stuff.”

He turned and glanced over at Steve before dropping his eyes to the floor.

“Look, thanks for yesterday – Grace and everything – it really means a lot to me. Thanks for letting me stay the night too.”

Steve nodded slowly; it was obvious he knew something was up with Danny.

“It was my pleasure, buddy. I’m glad I could help. You know I’ll always be here to help anytime I can.”

Danny looked up at Steve sharply his handsome face a mixture of hope and disbelief.

“Why?” he blurted the question out before he could stop himself.

Steve stood up and wandered a few steps closer to Danny his eyebrows furrowed in concern.

“Why what?”

Danny opened his mouth to speak then thought better of it. He shook his head firmly.

“Nothing. Forget it.”

The smaller man made to dodge around his friend and head for the door, but Steve snaked out an arm and grabbed him gently by the bicep.

“What’s wrong Danny? Why are you acting like this? Have I done something to piss you off?”

Danny gave his friend a nervous smile.

“No babe, nothing at all I just…I have to leave.”

“Danny please don’t shut me out. Are you embarrassed about having a bad dream last night? Jesus I can’t tell you how many times I’ve woken up screaming from nightmares. For the first few months I was back from Afghanistan I wouldn’t let anyone sleep with me overnight because I was afraid they would think I was deranged.”

Danny dropped his chin to his chest and shook his head again. Steve was still holding his arm and he refused to struggle to get away.

“No…it’s not that, it’s nothing.”

“Danno,” Steve’s voice was gentle and insistent as he turned his friend to face him. Steve held Danny’s arm with his right hand while his left cupped Danny’s chin and tipped his head up so their eyes met. “Please tell me what’s wrong. Don’t you trust me? I care about you, babe.”

Danny blinked and swallowed heavily as he stared up into Steve’s warm eyes. His gaze dropped to Steve’s lips and he couldn’t help thinking about how easy it would be to stand on his tip-toes and catch the other man’s mouth with his own.

He released a shaky sigh and dropped his eyes to Steve’s chest. He lifted his right hand to wrap it around the wrist of the hand Steve kept on his shoulder.

“Of course I trust you, babe. I trust you with my life; with my daughter’s life. That’s…that’s the problem.” Danny stuttered out the words and glanced up to see a flash of hurt in his best friend’s eyes.

“I don’t understand,” Steve replied. “Am I being to overbearing? I can step back if that’s what you want Danny.”

The Jersey native shook his head firmly and squeezed his eyes shut against the expression on his friend’s face.

“Nom it’s not that. It’s…” Danny paused as he struggled to find the right words.

“Steve, when I was in prison I began to understand that I was too trusting of people – of my friends. I realized that I was too open-hearted. If I cared about a friend I trusted him or her completely, and that’s what got me into the mess that put me in jail. I loved Rick like a brother and he turned on me and set me up for murder. Over those six years I was determined that if I ever got out I’d never let anyone get that close to me again. I’d never let anyone but my daughter into my heart again.”

Danny looked up and gave Steve a small, ironic smile.

“That rule lasted about a day with you. You’ve worked your way into my life until I can’t imagine it without you, and that scares the shit out of me. And I guess I…I also don’t really get why you do all these things for me.”

Steve smiled and ran a gentle thumb over Danny’s cheekbone.

“You really don’t know?” he spoke softly.

Danny lifted and dropped one shoulder in resignation.

“Because you like me and you think I’m a good guy.”

Steve nodded and his smile brightened.

“Yes that and…because I love you.”

Danny forced a sickly smile to his face. He knew Steve just meant he loved him as a friend.

“Thanks buddy, you know I love you too.”

Steve huffed in frustration and let go of Danny’s arm and raised both hands to cup the blond man’s face.

“No, Danny. Not as in ‘I love you bro you’re my best bud.’ I mean I love you. As in I’m in love with you. As in I want to take you to my bed. As in I want you with me for the rest of my life. As in I want you and Grace to move in here and…”

Danny slapped a hand over Steve’s mouth to quench the torrent of words. He needed time to think. He couldn’t process what Steve had said and he stared at the taller man agog.

“You - you love me?”

“Mmhmmm,” Steve’s reply was muffled by Danny’s palm.

Danny let his hand slide softly down Steve’s face and neck until it rested on his chest.

“You love me?” Danny clarified as if he’d misheard.

Steve rolled his eyes.

“Yes, Danno.”

“So if I were to kiss you right now that would be ok?” Danny asked nervously.

Steve’s smile spread into a grin. He stooped down until his mouth was inches from Danny’s.

“More than ok.”

 

**********

Danny’s hand took a tighter grip of the metal railing of the headboard and suppressed a moan as Steve slowly, tauntingly pushed inside him. There was a brief burn of pain as Steve’s cock filled him almost too much, but Danny forced himself to breathe through it and take everything Steve could give him. 

Danny was on his knees, legs spread wide and holding himself up by gripping the headboard. Steve held him in place with his big hands on Danny’s hips as he pushed in inexorably until he was buried to the hilt. The SEAL bent forward until his right arm was wrapped around Danny’s torso and his left hand gripped the headboard railing beside Danny’s.

Danny could feel the weight and heat of the dark haired man along his back and he moaned softly. Steve hadn’t yet moved and Danny was becoming desperate to feel his lover thrust against him.

“Steve…” he whispered, his voice a sigh.

Danny felt Steve suck and lick a trail down the back of his neck and shoulders as the SEAL began to slowly thrust inside him. The movements were so small at first Danny was hardly aware of them. He felt a trickle of sweat running down the side of his face and he wondered if he would just burn up under the heat of Steve’s body and his own passion.

He shivered from a sudden gust of cool air across his back as Steve peeled himself off Danny and pushed himself upright until he was once again kneeling behind the smaller man holding his hips.

“You ready Danny?” the SEAL’s voice was tight and hoarse and Danny began to realize how hard his lover was working to hold himself back, to ensure Danny had his pleasure first. Danny turned his head and looked over his shoulder at his lover, his eyes hooded and his pupils blown wide.

“Please, Steve,” Danny whispered desperately. “Please.”

Steve shifted his weight and pulled almost all the way out of Danny’s hole then slammed back in his cock dragging against Danny’s prostate. The effect was like a bolt of electricity through Danny and he suppressed another moan.

“I want to hear you, Danny,” Steve growled, his hands gripping Danny’s hips that much tighter. “I want to hear what I’m doing to you. I want every sound, every moan. I need to hear you.”

Danny man swallowed thickly and nodded at the instruction. In prison when he pleasured himself he learned to do it quietly, but he wasn’t in prison anymore. He was in his new life and Steve was part of it and he would give Steve whatever he desired.

Steve pulled out again and again slammed back into Danny causing the smaller man to tip his head back and moan loudly.

“That’s it, baby,” Steve’s voice was strangled and panting now. “That’s what I want to hear. You’re mine, Danny.” 

“Steve…god,” Danny begged without knowing what he was begging for. Steve leaned over Danny’s body once again. This time he used his left hand to steady himself on the mattress as he reached around Danny and gripped his lover’s cock and began pumping it gently. Danny cried out causing Steve’s iron control to begin to shatter.

The SEAL pumped Danny’s cock more firmly as he slammed in and out of his lover, his thrusts shifting Danny farther and farther up on the bed until his face was mashed against the headboard.

“Steve, oh Jesus, Steve I can’t…I can’t.”

Steve lifted the hand that was braced on the mattress and wrapped it around Danny’s torso again pulling the smaller man upright until he was sitting on Steve’s lap, impaled on Steve’s cock.

Danny tipped his head back onto Steve’s shoulder and the SEAL put his mouth against his lover’s ear pulling the lobe between his lips sucking it gently. He pumped Danny’s cock faster swirling his thumb around the head on every upstroke

“Come for me, Danny,” Steve growled, his own orgasm seconds away. “Let me see you. I want to see you.”

“Fuck, oh fuck, Steven!” Danny screamed as he arched his back and shuddered, his come shooting rhythmically over Steve’s hand and painting the headboard and wall in front of them.

“Yes, oh god baby, so beautiful!” Steve cried out as he slammed twice more into Danny and shuddered into his own powerful orgasm.

Danny came back to himself after several seconds realizing he was almost folded in half, Steve slumped heavily on his back.

“God,” Danny sighed feeling like a wet rag doll. His words seemed to stir Steve who gently pulled out of his lover and removed the condom dumping it into the nearby trashcan. Steve once again grabbed Danny around the waist and manhandled the unresisting man until they were both lying on their sides on the bed, Steve spooning in behind his lover.

“Bossy,” Danny grumbled feeling sleep tugging at the corners of his consciousness.

“You love it,” replied Steve his breath hot on the back of Danny’s neck.

Danny sighed in contentment.

“Maybe. Guess I’d better get used to you bossing me around if I’m going to work for you.”

Steve stiffened then pushed himself up on his elbow so he could look down at Danny.

“Does that mean you’re taking the job? That you’ll work for Five-0?”

Danny grinned happily as he nodded.

“Yeah, babe, I’ll take the job.”

Steve hooted with pleasure and pushed Danny onto his back stretching himself on top of the smaller man and kissing him passionately. He pulled back only when they both desperately needed air.

“We’re going to be great together Danny. The Five-0 team will be unstoppable.”

 

**********

“He’s insane. Why didn’t someone warn me he’s insane?” 

Danny stood in the doorway of Chin’s office looking aghast at the two cousins who were sitting around Chin’s desk eating lunch together. They looked at each other then back at Danny shrugging at the same time.

“We thought you knew,” replied Kono blandly. 

“What did he do?” inquired Chin calmly, already immune to the somewhat unorthodox methods of his young boss.

“He threw a suspect in a shark tank!”

Danny waited for the wholly justifiable cries of dismay and outrage from the rest of the Five-0 team.

Chin lifted his sandwich to take a bite from it while Kono dug in a Tupperware container for a carrot stick.

Danny stood frozen in the doorway as the two cousins ate contentedly.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Danny demanded after several seconds of silence. “Don’t you think throwing a man in a shark tank is just a little insane?”

Kono smiled brightly at the blond detective.

“Not really. You should have been here when he hung the guy off the building. Now that was crazy!”

Danny opened and closed his mouth like a fish and he cast his eyes from one cousin to the other. Chin looked up at him and smiled placidly.

“Oh, was there something else you needed, Danny?”

Danny swallowed heavily and backed out of the room before the crazy began to infect him too. He took two steps backward until he bumped into the hard muscled wall that was Steve McGarrett. Danny turned to look up at his lover who was grinning down at him gleefully.

“Hey babe! Wanna get some lunch? I’m hungry. Ocean voyages always do that to me.”

Danny sighed in frustration and threw his hands in the air.

“I’m the only sane one here. The rest of you are completely mad!”

Steve grinned widely and threw an arm around his partner’s shoulders guiding him towards the exit.

“Yes, Danno.”

Danny shook an annoyed finger at Steve as the SEAL opened the door.

“You’re a menace you know that?”

Steve nodded and pushed his lover gently through the door and into the hallway.

“Yes, Danno.”

The smaller man growled as they headed for the stairs.

“Don’t yes Danno me, Steven J. McGarrett! There are ways to do this job – proper ways, normal ways, sane ways.”

“Yes, Danno.”

 

The end.


End file.
